You are hereby summoned to appear in Court on attempt of murder. Following are the charges: Stopping my heart from beating when I saw the smooth edges in Astounding Stories, and making my heart miss five beats when I saw "The Earthman's Burden" illustrated by Paul!
I now think Astounding Stories has reached its highest peak. Arthur J. Burks' story was a wow. I hope he works on a story as he said he would in "The Readers' Corner" if he gets enough requests.
And Charles Willard Diffin! Here's a writer for you. I think the first story he ever wrote was published in Astounding Stories. Don't lose him. His "Holocaust" is his best, with the probable exception of "The Power and the Glory." I don't think the last mentioned ever got enough praise. I expect to see it reprinted some day in The Golden Book Magazine. It's distinctly smooth paper style.
And of course Sewell Peaslee Wright's "John Hanson" stories are top-notchers.
And Ray Cummings. Must we mention his story? We all know what to expect when we read one of his stories. I hope you have another serial by him soon.
I'm sure you'll be deluged with letters because of the even edges and the illustrations by Paul (who should draw at least two in every issue), but I hope you'll print my letter, because I never had a letter of mine in print, and want to get a thrill seeing this published.—Anthony Caserta, 4575 Park Ave., New York, N. Y.
"Very Pretty Problems Here"
Dear Editor:
The letters by P. Schuyler, J. N. Mosleh, and Jackson Gee in the last number sure do raise some very neat possibilities in Science. Anent travel in time, just what would you, Mr. Schuyler, expect to see if "John Doe" at 40 years (1931) went back to 1892 and met "John Doe" of that date on Main Street of his old home town? I suspect that two bodies cannot simultaneously contain the same ego, constant-entity, personality, or soul.
Which brings me to Mr. Mosleh, to ask: Just how is the self-realizant ego, which is conscious that "I am I" unchangingly for life, in any sense a derivative of the unstable, rapidly changing body?